He was sitting on the team bus outside of Arrowhead Stadium, preparing to head to the airport after a long, draining and disappointing day. A few minutes into a telephone conversation following the ' to the , was asked a question about his future with the defending champions -- and he metaphorically pumped the brakes."Do I think I'll be gone after this season?" Lynch repeated, pausing Dante Exum Jersey (https://www.jazzedgestore.com/utah-jazz-jeresy/dante-exum-jersey) to consider the question. "I don't know, man. The , their front office gets in the media; they talk a lot. I don't talk too much. I just play the game."If they have something going on, I don't know about it."Sometimes, however, actions speak louder than words, and Lynch, one of the , seemed to make a statement about the disconnect between him and his bo ses midway through Sunday's game. While the rest of the filed through the tunnel and into the visitors' locker room at the conclusion of the second quarter, Lynch remained on the field for the entirety of the 12-minute halftime.Lynch, who ran for 124 yards on 24 carries, later explained to my NFL Network colleague -- his former teammate -- that fatigue was the impetus for the decision not to go to the locker room. Said Robinson: "He told me he couldn't walk."The real question: Was Lynch expre sing his displeasure in the wake of recent reports, citing anonymous sources, that that the plan to give him his walking papers after this season?According to a source close to the 28-year-old running back, such reports have contributed to his deteriorating relationship with Seattle coach , as Lynch partially blames him for the existence of such stories and for the po sibility that his tenure might end after the 2014 season.Last month, I reported on NFL Network that Lynch , the residual effects of a training-camp holdout and organizational proclamations over the offseason that his . My NFL Media colleague Ian Rapoport said on NFL Network's "NFL GameDay Morning" that Lynch with Carroll. When I asked Lynch on Sunday if he and Carroll speak, he replied, "Pete's my head coach. Well, I mean, you know, he's really not in my position meetings. ... It ain't like we get to chop it up like that." Due to make $5 million in 2015 -- and potentially as much as $2.5 million in roster bonuses -- Lynch could be released if the decide to go with younger, cheaper options and , and/or to draft another back. Asked if he'd be surprised by such a scenario, Lynch said, "I understand the busine s. At the end of the day, it's just a busine s."That point was driven home in October when the to the . Lynch's agent, Doug Hendrickson, has denied a report that Lynch was so upset by the trade that the running back openly vented, temporarily refusing to board the team bus before it headed to the airport for a road game against the .Asked Sunday if the Harvin trade upset him, Lynch responded, "I'm upset when I don't get a first down on fourth-and-inches. ... You know, it is what it is. I was surprised, I gue s you could say."Lynch had ample reason to be upset on Sunday, as the were stopped on fourth down three times in the fourth quarter. Midway through the period, on third-and-goal from the Kansas City 4-yard line, Lynch bulled forward for two yards before being gang-tackled. Trailing 24-20, Carroll elected to go for it, but 's pa s to fell incomplete.The forced a punt and drove to the ' 36, but on fourth-and-1 Lynch was , and the never threatened again."To be honest, this was a hard-fought game today," Lynch said. "The played some real good ball, on offense and defense. Sometimes the ball just doesn't bounce your way."The defeat dropped Seattle to , three games behind the in the NFC West, and a game behind the and in the race for two wild-card spots. Lynch, however, remained optimistic that the can compete for another ."I don't think there's any problem with what we've got going on," he said. "We've just gotta let it fall and keep fighting. We've got a lot of ball to go. These are challenges for us. That's one thing we have been good at, facing the challenges. I think it can be accomplished."When asked if the were a "championship team," Lynch became animated."Is this a championship team? Yeah, yeah, we've got the heart of a champion," he said. "When you've got players like , , -- you're about to make me name the whole damn roster -- and there's some young guys whose names a lot of people don't know who bring a lot of fight. I always look at the best of our team. So ... hell yeah. I would have to be a fool to say no."As the ' bus headed toward the Kansas City airport, Lynch gave a final thought: "The main thing I just want to be communicated is that we played a hard-fought game, and it didn't go our way. Everything else, you just let it fall into place."Follow Michael Silver on Twitter . Karl Malone Jersey (https://www.jazzedgestore.com/utah-jazz-jeresy/karl-malone-jersey)